Finding the right supports and services to manage the demands of daily life, whilst managing CP can help your child’s, and your own, emotional and physical health.

It is important to have the support of your healthcare team, other professionals and organisations that understand CP, and know how to get you and your family the assistance you need, as well as answers to any questions you may have.

Having regular consultations and monitoring by your child or young person’s healthcare team, will help you to access the services and support you all may need now and into the future for good physical health and general wellbeing, as they head towards adulthood.

During the school years, members of the team, such as a physiotherapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist or social worker, can help with advice in a broad range of areas. These may include:

• accessing school-based programs to assist with learning
• developing sports-specific skills to help with mental health, wellbeing, friendships and inclusion
• assessment of the school environment for good access to learning, sport and recreation areas
• advice about access to the latest equipment and assistive technologies to assist with daily life, improve communication and enable participation
• advice about medication and treatments for improved physical health
• supporting your young person to start taking control of their health, wellbeing and general life, in preparation for adulthood.

While your young person is still receiving support from paediatric services, start finding a GP they relate to and begin to handover specific health concerns or relevant health history. There are no automatic referrals for adult services after a young person has left paediatric care, so it’s important to have a good relationship with a trusted GP to provide a link from one to the other.

There may also be a range of other things happening in your family’s life that you would like to receive support for, which could include counselling, financial and legal advice, or advocacy.

There are supports and services available to everyone in the CP community. Some are provided by community groups and governments at no cost, while others are run by professional organisations that may require a referral from your healthcare team.

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provides information about, and connection to, services and support for people with disability. If you need help applying for your child or young person, your team can help you find someone to advise you on how to get the most out of your NDIS plan.

Some of this information is provided and produced courtesy of The Future Thinking Project, Ability WA.